


Stay Like This Forever

by Meatball42



Category: Avengers Academy (Video Game), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Bechdel Test Pass, Graduation, Happy Ending, Inspired by Art, M/M, Male-Female Friendship, Marriage Proposal, Pining Tony Stark, Reverse Big Bang Challenge
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-17
Updated: 2019-05-17
Packaged: 2020-03-06 16:15:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,373
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18854575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Meatball42/pseuds/Meatball42
Summary: Avengers Academy is coming to an end. Tony is worrying about the future, especially when he finds out that he and Steve will not be on the same team. Jan Van Dyne is the best wingwoman out there, but even she may not be enough to overcome Tony’s hangups and guide her friend to happiness.





	Stay Like This Forever

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [The Next Step](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18848044) by [zappedbysnow](https://archiveofourown.org/users/zappedbysnow/pseuds/zappedbysnow). 



> When I went through the dozens of lovely pieces of art created for this year's Cap-Iron Man Reverse Big Bang, I wasn't planning on participating—I just wanted to see the pretty. But zappedbysnow's art hit me so hard. I was already mourning the end of Avenger's Academy, and I wanted to write something about graduation, I just didn't know what. I am so grateful to zappedbysnow for creating this sweet and heartwarming art and allowing me the opportunity to write out some of my feelings for this game I loved. I hope I did the art and the Academy justice!
> 
> For the significance of the hug portrayed in this fic and the art, check out [this handy-dandy set of screenshots](https://imgur.com/a/xSJtH) from the Avengers Academy Civil War event! (I am not the compiler, blessings be upon them)

“Stark. Stark. Stark!”

“Hey!” Tony cried as his laptop was slammed shut, just missing his retreating fingers. He looked up to a conference table full of glares, and looming over him was the leather-clad form of Nick Fury, doing his one-eyed stare of death.

The Academy Director crossed his arms and frowned deeply at Tony. “I have _generously_ allowed you to participate in this highly important meeting because I was _assured_ you would not be a distraction.”

“I was not-!” Tony began indignantly.

“You were muttering about both transistors and bikinis, and I don’t even want to know why,” Pepper crisply told him off, not even looking up from her tablet, on which she was taking notes.

“I was multi-tasking! I’ve been paying attention,” Tony insisted to Fury.

“Then I’m sure you’ll have no problem adding your recommendation for the leader of the West Coast Avengers.”

Tony back-tracked in his thoughts. He actually had been paying attention- kinda. His brain recorded background conversations if he told it to, he just had to play it all back. He zipped through Maria Hill’s speech about the need to split the student body into teams and scatter them through to world and space because the multiverse was breaking down—old news—and the last few teams whose rosters had been decided. The problem was that Tony had maybe sort of zoned out on the poolside bartending robot he was making, and his attention had… kinda… slipped, a little.

“How about, uh,” he cast around wildly, “Greer! She’d like LA, I bet, and she’s been mentoring some of the new Avengers already.”

“Tigra has already been assigned to the Midwest Division,” said Vision in his even voice.

“Why is he here?” Valkyrie whispered to Jessica Drew, who was seated beside her.

“He’s helping fund everything,” Spider-Woman explained loud enough to be heard down the table.

“Nuh-uh, I’m very involved! Leaders of the teams, right? West Coast, what about Hawkeye? He seems like leadership material! And I bet he looks good with a tan.”

“Barton lost his bow yesterday,” Melinda May commented.

“Okay, maybe he’s not ready yet,” Tony admitted. “What about Falcon! He’s mature, and he was one of the first students here! He’s had loads of training.”

“Sam Wilson has already been assigned to Captain America’s team in Washington, D.C.” T’Challa’s delivery was entirely level, but somehow still radiated disdain. “Would you like to look over someone’s notes, Iron Man?”

For once, Tony didn’t let their rivalry get his back up; he was too distracted. “Woah woah woah, wait, what? Steve’s in D.C.?”

“That was decided an hour ago,” Fury said, starting to sound like his name. “Maybe you shouldn’t be involved in this process at all.”

“Maybe you should make your meetings a little shorter,” Tony suggested, “like, who’s still paying attention after an hour?”

The whole table just stared at him.

“Okay, I’m sorry, but what? How is Captain America not stationed in New York? He basically _is_ New York!”

“You said you were gonna lead the New York team like fifteen times,” Star-Lord pointed out.

“You sent an email,” Hope Van Dyne chimed in.

“There was ClipArt in it,” Mary-Jane giggled. “I didn’t know that still existed.”

“It was a late night, okay, and anyway, why can’t there be co-leaders to a team?” Tony defended himself. “Huh? Steve can’t be in D.C.!”

“Why not?” Pepper asked, irritated.

“Because… it’s just wrong!”

“Captain America, stationed in the capital of America?” Star-Lord shrugged. “Sounds fine to me.”

Fury sighed through his nose, eyes closed, looking as though he were trying very hard not to explode. It was an expression Tony was unfortunately familiar with.

“Mr. Stark, please see yourself out.”

 

 

Tony practically floated out of SHIELD HQ, dumbstruck. How could Steve not be staying in New York? How would that even work? Tony was supposed to lead the New York City team by himself, without Cap’s endless nagging? No more high-and mighty speeches? No more insisting that hard work and grit were superior to innovative robot design? No more piercing blue eyes and pouty pink lips?

 _Wait, what?_ Tony shook his head. Clearly, the shock was getting to him.

“Tony!”

Jan swooped down in front of Tony and grew back to her normal size, landing gracefully, hands already flapping in distress. “Kamala snapped a picture of you leaving the strategizing meeting and captioned it ‘sad puppy.’ You looked like someone set your cheese fridge on fire! And you’re walking instead of flying! Are you okay?”

“I don’t know,” Tony answered, still dazed. “Steve’s gonna be in D.C.”

“O...kay?”

“And I’m in New York!”

Jan looked confused. “I know? I’m in New York too! Dream team!” She stuck out her fist.

Tony participated in the Dream Team Fistbump Sequence, but he was still crestfallen. “It’s just… I assumed Steve and I would be leading a team together. Who would be better?”

Jan sighed. She put her arm around his shoulders—or, around his upper arms at least—and tugged him to a nearby bench. “Tony, the two of you are like stripes and paisley; you’re both excellent at your own thing, but you just shouldn’t be right next to each other. Like oil and water. No,” she snapped her fingers, “like water and an oil fire.”

“Hey, we’ve gotten a lot better recently!” protested Tony.

Jan tilted her head. “...Last week you two got in a fight over whether people should have to go through training before joining one of the American Avengers units. You called him a tool of the man.”

“Affectionately!”

“He said you were going to blow yourself up one day or be killed by your own robots.”

“See, he cares about me! We’re buddies!”

“Tony, honey, I don’t know what to tell you. No one in their right mind would put you on the same team.”

Tony swallowed, hard. It was true that he and Steve had had their differences—and that sometimes those differences had caused a decent amount of property or structural damage to the Academy. He remembered the tough times, like their Civil Disagreement that had torn apart the campus. It was easy to see how, from an outside perspective, people might think they didn’t get along.

But Tony also remembered all the times Steve had complimented him, or helped him out in class or in a fight. Way back when Steve had first arrived, Tony helped him campaign for Class President, even though Steve had been the only candidate. They’d worked together defending the Academy from invasions far more than they’d ever been seriously fighting. They’d even gone on a flirty study date, once, which Tony had hoped—thought! He had maybe vaguely considered, once or twice, that was all—that it might lead to something more. But just like a lot of relationships around campus, it had never amounted to anything.

Tony had always considered them friends, even if he blustered about it to save face. He was too cool to be friends with goody-two-shoes Steve Rogers. But… that didn’t mean he didn’t like the guy. And he always felt that, underneath it all, Steve had liked him, too.

“I just… I thought he’d always be around,” Tony confessed. “Who am I supposed to make fun of for being an old man now? Who’s going to shout at me until I admit that maybe something I’m doing isn’t one hundred percent the perfect, only right way? Who’s gonna teach me to spar outside the suit? And show me good burger spots for less than fifty bucks?”

Jan squeezed his hand and leaned her head on his shoulder. “Pepper will shout at you, Danny Rand can teach you hand-to-hand, and Peter Parker would probably swoon if you asked him to take you somewhere on the cheap. Especially if you offered to pay.”

Tony nodded, finally accepting that this was going to happen. “I know. But it won’t be the same.”

Jan hugged him. They sat for a minute in silence, until she started twitching. Tony recognized that she was feeling the need to release gossip and nudged her side until she let loose.

“Not to point out the obvious, but this is definitely more about your crush than wanting to be on the same Avengers team.”

Tony jolted up on the bench like Black Widow had tased him. “My what? Crush? What crush? Jan, you’re—you’re going crazy.”

Jan stood up purely so she could cross her arms and raise a perfectly-shaped eyebrow at him. The high-key drama reminded Tony of why they were so perfectly matched as best friends, and even through his defensiveness, he felt a surge of fondness.

“You have had a crush on Steve Rogers since the second he appeared on campus,” Jan declared. “Don’t even try to say otherwise.”

Tony chewed on his lip, but Jan’s sharp glare had him folding like a wet paper bag. “…Okay, fine. I may… like him, like that, just a tiny amount.” He held up a tiny pinch of air.

Jan rolled her eyes.

“But that just makes this all worse!” Tony protested. “I’ll never get to see him glare at me again, or scowl, or do that deep breath thing where it looks like he’s trying not to punch me!”

“You’re very strange,” said Jan affectionately.

“That’s why you love me,” Tony said off-handedly. “How am I supposed to _live_ , Jan?!”

His best friend sat down beside him with a sigh. “There’s still a week before graduation. I know finals are going to be a breeze for you, and you don’t have to plan to move to another state or country or planet or dimension. You have time this week to plan out something to say to him. The only other thing you have to do is finish your speech for graduation.”

“My… speech?”

“Tony!” Jan squealed, slapping him on the shoulder. “The students voted for you to make the farewell speech!”

Tony scratched at his beard, which was definitely present and visible and real. “Was that, maybe, two weeks ago, while I was working on uploading my brain to the cloud?”

“Yes?”

“Okay, cause I don’t remember that week at all. What’s this speech about?”

“Responsibility,” Jan said wryly.

“And our classmates… voted for me?”

“I think everyone’s expecting something hilarious,” Jan admitted. “But I have faith in you.”

“That I am responsible and can write a serious speech? Or that it’ll be seriously funny?”

Jan smiled her most innocent smile. “I have faith in you!”

Tony laughed, and afterwards, he felt much less like it was the end of the world. “Thanks Jan. You’re the best.”

She just winked. “So write a great speech, and plan out how you’ll finally tell Steve how you feel. Worst case scenario, he doesn’t feel the same way, and you’ll be in different states until the awkward fades away.”

Tony took a deep breath, sitting up tall. “Yeah… you’re right. It’s just talking to a hot guy. No biggie. I can do this, I’m Tony Stark! I’m cool, and suave, and—”

“Responsible!”

 

 

Tony looked down over the rows of his fellow Avengers from the graduation stage. Everyone was in high spirits after the morning full of events planned by Jan, and the lovely and orderly graduation ceremony designed by Pepper. Diplomas had been handed out by Director Fury and the other Academy Staff, who were now seated in a row on the stage. Tony’s farewell speech was the last thing they would all do together as a school, and he wasn’t about to make it boring! So far during his speech, the crowd had been rowdy and responsive as he reminisced over some of everyone’s favorite memories—especially as he walked around the stage and occasionally flew over their teachers.

“We will never forget the most important lessons we learned here at Avengers Academy,” Tony orated. He raised his hand dramatically to count off.

“Dedication: Always go 200% on your Halloween costumes, because they will somehow make you better at fighting.”

Someone let out an imitation of Steve’s werewolf howl, and laughter broke out again. Tony waited until it quieted a bit.

“Time management: Never set an alarm for the middle of the night to do homework. Other people did that, right?” he asked.

“Nope!” another student cried, starting a few arguments amongst the crowd.

“Teamwork,” Tony continued. “It takes at least two people, but usually three people, to get anything done.”

He took his time returning to the podium, letting the chatter die down. Tony smiled when he thought that he’d learned how to work a crowd better during his time at Avengers Academy. As he turned to face his fellow students for what could be the last time, he realized that he’d matured in a lot of ways.

“But most importantly,” he said quietly into the microphone, drawing everyone’s attention again. “We learned that the friendships you make matter just as much as how fast you can fly or how hard you can punch. No matter how kick-ass you are, you’re always better when you have good people standing next to you.”

An appreciative murmur went through the crowd and there was some applause; the first applause Tony had gotten that wasn’t cheering for a good joke.

“My last words to all of you a quote from some of my personal heroes, and honorary Avengers, Bill S. Preston, Esquire and Ted 'Theodore' Logan: Be excellent to each other. And party on, dudes!”

With that, Tony threw his graduation cap in the air and took off into the sky. Behind him echoed the sweet sounds of electric guitar, surprise exploding confetti cannons, the thunderous cheers of nearly two hundred Avengers and the outraged cries of authority figures.

It was good to be the king.  


 

 

 

All of the Academy’s various food trucks and stalls were set up around the park and the quad after graduation, so people could grab a bite while they hugged their friends, took selfies, and said goodbye to their classmates. SHIELD agents hung around the edges of the crowd in case fighting broke out, but it hadn’t happened yet. For once, the Academy wasn’t being invaded, and everyone seemed to be getting along.

It was a gorgeous, clear day, just a bit humid, and the students whose family or friends had come out to watch them graduate were giving tours of the campus. Jan’s parents couldn’t make it out, though they had promised to watch the livestream from work, so she was sitting on the balcony of Stark Tower with Tony, watching the last few hours of Avengers Academy together. Other flying friends occasionally buzzed up to hang out for a few minutes, or take a last dip in Tony’s hot tub, before going on to other pursuits.

Jan was pointing out some excellent early summer fashions when Ironheart took a lap around the Tower and came in to land nearby.

Riri barely had time to retract her armor—and actually Tony had a few questions, because since when had she gotten her suit to move more smoothly than his?!—before Jan was bouncing over.

“Ohmigod, I saw you across the stage earlier and didn’t get to say how much I love your grad outfit!”

“Thanks.” Riri smiled, smoothing down her red-and-gold jumpsuit with steampunk flourishes that still looked like it could have graced one of Jan’s runways. “It was supposed to be done for the last invasion, boost my fighting abilities a touch, but between finals and my MIT correspondence courses, I didn’t have time.”

“Smart, stylish, and one of the best at punching baddies in the face!” Jan gave Riri an enthusiastic hug while Riri giggled. “You’re the best! I’m gonna miss you so much!”

“Boston isn’t that far away, especially when we can both fly! We’ll see each other,” Riri assured Jan. “Plus, I’ve been having some ideas for making your suit photosynthesize its own energy blasts, so you’ll have to come visit me.”

“Hey, I’m the one who comes up with crazy ideas for Wasp’s suits,” Tony protested, getting up from the edge of the roof.

Riri propped a hand on her hip. “Looks like you’re being surpassed,” she taunted.

“I wear only the best,” Jan chimed in. “If you think you can make me a better photosynthesizing suit, I’ll consider both submissions.”

“Challenge accepted, it’s on!” Tony hugged Riri as well. “Am I invited to Boston too?”

“You’re an alum, you can visit if you want,” she told him with a grin. “I’d love to get in some lab time with you. It seems like we almost never got to chill here, between holidays and multidimensional crap and Hydra. We’ll probably be busy, but we’ll make time. It’s what friends do.”

Tony squeezed her extra hard. “I’m lucky to have such a great friend… even if you keep trying to steal Jan.”

“Trying?” Riri said, stepping to the edge of the roof. “I think I’d call this a success. Snap me,” she called to Jan, before blasting off toward the dorms.

Jan laughed at Tony’s put-out look. “See? It’s not going to be hard to keep in touch with our friends. All it takes is caring enough to make it happen.”

“Yeah.” Tony smiled. “I guess… before Avengers Academy, I never had friends, especially not ones who’d make an extra effort to see me.”

“This place made a big difference to a lot of nerds,” Jan agreed. She tucked an arm around his waist and they looked over the campus together. “I mean, I’ve always been good at making friends. But I’m happy for you.”

Tony started to tickle her in retaliation, and Jan shrieked and jumped off the roof, hovering a few feet out of reach in her tiny form.

“Oh hey, look!” She pointed at a small crowd by the Archive. “There’s Cap!”

“Which one?” Tony asked thoughtlessly.

“Steve, dummy!” Jan looped around and landed back at his side, pointing at the cluster she was talking about. “By the edge of the Timefog. See Sam’s jacket?”

“Oh yeah…”

Tony bit his lip. Despite all the pep-talks from Jan and the thought he’d put into it this past week, he still wasn’t sure about how to approach things with Steve. The idea of walking up to his friend-slash-rival of the last few years and saying he wanted them to be friends after school ended just seemed so intimidating for some reason. Why couldn’t it be simple, like with Riri? But Tony imagined saying the words he wanted to say and seeing Steve get all uncomfortable and make excuses not to see Tony—or worse, laugh at him! Especially if it happened in front of Steve’s friends. Tony would never live it down.

“I don’t know Jan, he looks busy.”

Jan grabbed his arm and turned him to face her. “Tony Stark, this ends now! You never ran away from a fight and I will not let you run away from this. We are going down there and you will talk to your crush like an Avenger!”

Faced with the full might of the Wasp, Tony had no choice but to give in.

Ten minutes later, Tony swallowed a bracing espresso shot at the coffee cart, psyching himself up for what was about to happen. The sweet burn of caffeine hitting his bloodstream helped with the anxious jitters, but he was still glancing over his shoulder every few seconds, making sure that Steve and his friends hadn’t wandered off.

Jan was doing an excellent job gassing him up. “You are one of the coolest guys on this campus and in New York! Your hair looks fantastic today! Steve is lucky you want to be friends with him! You smell like a new Louis Vuitton purse!”

“Is that a good thing?” Tony asked nervously, running his hand through his hair.

“Totally!” Jan cried. “Go get your man!”

Tony turned around and took a few steps toward Steve and his friends, then hesitated.

“Okay, we’re done with this. Hey Steve!” Jan shouted.

Steve turned around, just in time for Jan to shove Tony forward. Tony stumbled, regained his footing, and waved awkwardly.

Steve said something to Sam and Bucky, then walked over to Tony. “Hi Tony. Great speech.”

“Uh, thanks. That means a lot, coming from you.” _Why did he say that?_ “Uh, so. Plans for after graduation?”

Steve nodded, all casual as though Tony weren’t acting like a lunatic. “I’m going on a road trip around the country with Sam. America Chavez invited us to visit her family, and after that I’m heading up the Avengers team in D.C.”

“That sounds great.” Tony was momentarily distracted by thinking about what he would have to do to score an invite to America Chavez’s dimension, but a moment of silence had his self-consciousness rushing back. “Uh…”

“What’s on your mind, Tony?” Steve asked, looking way too perfect and nice in his casual jacket-and-denim ensemble.

“Yeah! Um…” Tony took a deep breath. “Steve. I… I know we’ve had our differences. But…”

Steve smiled. “I’ll miss you, too, Tony.”

“Yeah, yes, I—I’ll miss you, but what I was really trying to say… you heard my speech, right?”

“The one an hour ago, at our graduation?” Steve looked amused. “Yes, I was there.”

“Yeah. Well… when I was talking about, how, even if you’re super kick-ass like me, you’re always better with someone at your side? Someone you trust?”

Steve nodded.

“Well… I was, obviously, talking about all of us, as Avengers, and teamwork and stuff…”

“Tony, are you alright?” Steve asked. He stepped forward, tilting his head to get a look at Tony’s eyes.

Tony stepped back, breathing faster. “No I might be in cardiac distress but let me finish,” he blurted. “I was, for me at least,” he gulped, “I was talking about you.”

“What are you saying?” Steve asked after a moment.

“I’m pretty great, alright?” Tony began to babble. “I mean, I’m Iron Man. I’m a genius, and one of the best tanks this school has. But… it doesn’t feel right if you’re not there with me. I think… I’m a better Avenger when I’m with you.”

Steve’s jaw dropped open, marking one of the few times Tony had ever seen him look completely shocked.

“That’s…”

Tony cringed. “I’m sorry, I made it all weird—”

“That’s the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me,” Steve breathed.

“It… is?”

“I had no idea you felt that way.”

“So, uh…” In a mortifying moment, Tony offered his left hand to shake—he and Steve had never shaken hands before and what if Steve was weirded out by his prosthesis? Because even though Steve’s _best friend_ had a prosthetic arm, too, maybe he was used to that one?—before realizing how dumb that looked as Steve hesitated, and dropping it in deep embarrassment.

Before Tony could do more than hang his head in shame about how 100% of his former smoothness had deserted him, Steve stepped forward and hugged him.

Hugged.

Him.

For a second, Tony could only stand there, being hugged by Captain America.

By stubborn, maddening, cute, perfect Steve.

Tony hugged him back, tight, and Steve’s arms tightened around him in response. It was basically heaven on Earth. Tony may or may not have snuggled in a little bit.

When they finally loosened their grips on each other, they pulled apart slowly and didn’t go too far. Tony was stunned by the wonderful smell of Steve’s leather jacket and the warmth of him. Steve’s eyes were shining and he looked at Tony in a way Tony had only ever seen him look at Peggy, back when they were dating.

“Wow, that was unexpected,” Tony said, despite the blush already rising in his cheeks. He knew something terrible was about to come out of his mouth, but that didn’t stop his mouth from opening and the words from coming out. “This is really really nice, and I didn’t even say anything about the massive crush I’ve had on you for ages.”

Then he felt the blood drain from his face. “I mean—!”

But Steve didn’t rip away from him in horror. Instead, he laughed. Fondly. And kept smiling that sweet smile that made him look like the sun was shining directly on him.

“Yes, you did.”

“I… what?”

Steve stroked Tony’s back like he was calming an animal. “You said you’re a better Avenger when you’re with me. That’s the most romantic sentiment I’ve heard in my life.”

“I… we have very different definitions of romance.”

“You make me a better Avenger too, Tony,” Steve said quietly. “I’ve liked you for a while, but I didn’t think you felt the same way.”

When Steve said it, considering how Steve felt about Avenging… it did sound really romantic. For once, Tony was at a loss for words.

“That’s—I mean, you really—” He cleared his throat. “Yeah, I bet, I’m pretty great.”

Steve chuckled, brushing a finger over Tony’s reddened cheek. “You are.”

Tony only blushed more, until Steve leaned in to kiss him.

It was everything Tony had been secretly dreaming of for three years. And it got better when a cheer started up around them as the nearby students noticed and they gained attention at the speed of superhero gossip.

Steve went to pull away, not one for the spotlight, but Tony knew better. He grabbed Steve’s lapels and kissed him even harder.

Someone put their hands on a confetti cannon (Tony guessed it was Jan, the best wingwoman in New York) and party paper began to rain down on them.

Finally, Tony let Steve go, mostly because he had confetti in his eyelashes.

“Do you want to go on a date with me?” Steve asked, like it was the easiest thing in the world, and not something Tony had tried to figure out how to say for a week straight.

“Sure,” Tony said breathlessly. “I mean yeah, coolcoolcool. I’ll pick you up at eight?”

“I live next door to you,” Steve laughed.

“So I’ll pick you up at eight?”

“Sounds good.” Steve straightened into his heroic stance, and Tony’s heart squeezed at the sight. “I know this might be hard, since we’ll be living in different states, but I care about you, Tony. I want to give this a shot, if that’s something you want.”

“I—want. That. Yes. And. I will go now.”

“I’ll see you tonight.” Steve gave him another brief kiss, and then Tony nudged on his rocket boots and flew up into the sky before too many pictures of him the same color as his armor could end up on Insta.

Down below, Jan crowed in victory. Steve returned to his friends, and Tony spied Sam and Bucky clapping him on the back.

Their time at Avengers Academy may be over, but the rest of their lives were only about to start. Tony flew into the sunset over campus, knowing life was only going to get better from here.

  
  


 

 

Five Years Later

The sun was bright overhead and Tony hovered over the steps of Avengers Hall, the last remaining building from the original Academy that was in the same place. The other buildings had been relocated or demolished, but this one reminder of the years of classes, dates, and battles stood in remembrance. New developments had gone up two year ago, once the last of the Timefog had been cleared.

It was half past noon, which was when Steve was supposed to meet him. Tony knew the subways were backed up today, plus Steve was coming from the airport, so delays were to be expected. Tony totally wasn’t worried. He was only fiddling with the little box in his pocket out of habit.

His wrist vibrated and Tony tapped a button to pull up his vidcall.

“Tony Tony Tony, the UN wants us to liaise on the investigation of the teleportation thefts in Albany. Do we have the personnel to cover it?”

“Harley, I left you in charge for a reason. I know you can handle this.”

“But what if I make the wrong choice and something goes horribly wrong?! I don’t think I’m old enough for this responsibility.”

“I was leading the Avengers when I was your age. I’ve been training you for three years now. You’re just as qualified as me!”

Harley’s hologram scowled. “That’s not exactly a ringing endorsement.”

“Hey, it’s not too late to make someone else my replacement.”

“No no no!” Harley took a deep breath. “You’re right. I can do this. Do you think Luke and Jessica could go upstate for us?”

“I think if you sell it as a fun family vacation, they would. I don’t think they’ve left the city since Danielle was born.”

“Okay. Okay.”

Tony laughed. “You’ve got this. And if you’re ever feeling overwhelmed, don’t be afraid to call me or Jan. We’re never too far away to help you out.”

“Thanks Tony. Okay, I gotta go.”

“Don’t run my team into the ground!” Tony ordered as Harley ended the call.

“Planning on leaving the city?”

Tony spun around. “You made it!”

He flew into Steve’s arms. Steve, used to this treatment, spun them around to slow the momentum and held Tony close.

“You asked me to be here. Of course I made it.” He caressed the back of Tony’s neck and kissed him.

Tony melted in his boyfriend’s arms. “Just, I know it was sudden and you had to come all the way up—”

“It’s always sudden with you, and I’ve told you a hundred times that coming up to New York is no trouble. Not if I get to see you when I get here.” Steve released Tony so that he could land on the steps. “Now, are you going to let me in on the secret? What are we doing back at the Academy?”

“This is where I was when I learned that we weren’t going to be stationed together,” Tony explained. “Five years ago, I felt like the world was ending, and I didn’t even know why. I hadn’t really realized how important you were to me. I’d never thought about being an Avenger without you. And now I have. I’ve been in New York while you’ve been in D.C., and it’s been amazing, but… I still miss fighting next to you.”

Steve linked their fingers. “I miss it too.”

“And that’s why… I’ve been talking to Sam. He and Kamala have been in sort of the same boat as us, with her in Jersey and him in D.C. He wants to transfer to the NYC team so they can get a place together, and I… I want to move down to D.C. That is, if you’ll have me on your team.”

“If I’ll have you?” Steve whooped. “Yes, please! I can’t wait for us to be on the same team again!” He shook his head, marveling. “I can’t imagine getting to see you every day. And this is all cleared with Pepper?”

Tony grinned, feeling light as a feather. “Just waiting for the okay from my new district commander.”

Steve swept Tony back into his arms. “Tell me where to sign,” Steve murmured into Tony’s ear, holding him close.

Tony hugged his boyfriend back, feeling his pulse start to race as he prepared for his final surprise. “The other thing is… I was hoping we could get a place together, too?”

“Sounds perfect,” Steve said with a broad smile.

“Good. Because… I have another question to ask you.”

From the corner of his eye, Tony caught a glimpse of Peter Parker hidden in a bush with his camera, ready to capture the moment for posterity. Steve didn’t notice, because his gaze was locked on Tony in shock and wonder as Tony pulled the little box from his pocket and went down on one knee on the steps of Avengers Hall.

This time, Tony had planned out his whole speech. But he didn’t feel nervous today, not like he had five years ago, because when he saw the love on Steve’s face, he knew exactly how this was going to end.


End file.
